Wired reports that engineers at the Intelligent Systems, Robotics and Cybernetics unit at Sandia National Laboratories have designed a “Multi-Modal Vehicle Concept” that would be able to conduct a variety of land, air and sea missions by transforming itself during an operation. This flexibility would allow the transformer drone to adapt to and conquer a number of different terrains and obstacles.

According to Discovery News, the drone begins as a UAV, but can drive underwater using its wings as fins. Nearing land, wheels appear to help it navigate. Boasting a jumping height of 30 feet, the Multi-Modal Vehicle Concept can move over virtually any obstacle in its path.

“The real value added [of the Multi-Modal Vehicle] is that it allows maximum flexibility in highly complex missions without the concern over whether or not all of the vehicles are positioned just right,” Jon Salton, a Sandia engineer, told Wired.

Here’s what Sandia wrote about the transformer drone on their website:

Imagine a mission where you have to covertly fly into an area, traverse through water, across land, and overcome obstacles along the way. That might seem impossible with a single unmanned vehicle. How could one vehicle overcome so many terrains and obstacles? That would take a team of unmanned aerial, undersea, and ground vehicles, right? Not according to Intelligent Systems, Robotics, & Cybernetics (ISRC), where we specialize in tackling the most difficult and unique mobility challenges.

The Multi-Modal Vehicle concept is a single unmanned system capable of flying, swimming, driving, and hopping across a variety of terrains and obstacles. ISRC has built and conducted limited testing on conceptual hardware, and while the concept may appear to be off in the distant future, our testing has shown that this concept could soon be a reality.

According to Wired, the drone sheds parts. As a result, every mission is costly due to the inability to recover these parts.

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